MAXWELL AIR FORCE BASE, Ala. -- The Enlisted Heritage Hall, the U.S. Air Force’s only museum solely dedicated to the history of its enlisted corps, marked the 40th anniversary of its facility's opening with a commemorative event, May 1, 2026, a day ahead of its official May 2 milestone.
The celebration featured a four-hour open house where current and former service members, families and historians gathered to tour exhibits and share stories. A cake-cutting ceremony at 11:30 a.m. served as the event's centerpiece, honoring the institution's ongoing legacy of preserving enlisted history.
The museum, located on Gunter Annex, serves as a central repository for the stories and sacrifices of the Airmen who form the backbone of the force. It originally began as a small collection of artifacts in the hallways of the Senior Noncommissioned Officer Academy before being officially dedicated in 1984. On May 2, 1986, the Enlisted Heritage Hall moved into its current home—a repurposed World War II chow hall—cementing its mission to preserve this vital, yet often overlooked, aspect of military history.
"Officers often dominate traditional military history narratives, but EHH highlights the maintainers, defenders, medics, communicators and countless others whose daily work makes mission success possible," Melissa Sims, Air Force Enlisted Heritage Research Institute curator, said.
Visitors to the museum can explore a vast collection of artifacts chronicling enlisted history from the early days of ballooning to modern conflicts. Notable exhibits include a B-17 Flying Fortress ball turret, a convoy gun truck used in Iraq and an exact replica of a Hanoi Hilton prisoner of war cell. The facility also features an enlisted Medal of Honor display honoring heroes such as Airman 1st Class William Pitsenbarger and a Wall of Achievers that pays tribute to former enlisted members who later achieved fame, including Johnny Cash, Charlton Heston and Chuck Norris.
The institution’s mission expanded in 1997 with the establishment of the Air Force Enlisted Heritage Research Institute (AFEHRI), integrating the museum into what is now the Thomas N. Barnes Center for Enlisted Education, part of Air University. This broadened its role to include archival preservation and direct support for Air Force professional military education.
Dr. Emily Shade, the director of Institutional Effectiveness and Research for the Barnes Center, described the museum's journey as a "labor of love." A retired chief master sergeant, Shade has a long history with the institution, having served as the AFEHRI director from 2015 to 2018 and later as its civilian curator from 2019 to January 2024.
"It’s a true honor to have been trusted to be the holder of Airmen stories," Shade said. "There is nothing more rewarding than being able to tell someone else’s story every day. Our enlisted Airmen are truly awe-inspiring."
Today, the institute houses over 3,000 artifacts and an archive of approximately one million documents, welcoming around 25,000 visitors annually. For Sims, who joined as curator in 2024, the ongoing mission is to make that history a tangible experience.
"My personal philosophy has always been about bringing history to life, making it relevant, memorable and meaningful rather than letting it sit behind glass," Sims stated. "If people leave the museum feeling inspired, connected and with a stronger sense of purpose, then we’ve done more than preserve history, we’ve made it matter."
Both Sims and Shade hope to see AFEHRI and the museum continue to evolve and remain focused on its tagline: "Preserving yesterday, today, for tomorrow."
Their shared vision for the next 40 years includes expanded archival support, greater digitization of collections and more interactive displays to connect with future generations of Airmen.